Characteristics of the Ideal Man and the Ideal Woman in Three Different Cultures - Essay Example

? Characteristics of the Ideal Man and the Ideal Woman in Three Different Cultures Characteristics of the Ideal Man and the Ideal Woman in Three Different Cultures In the Muslim culture, men are expected to financially provide for their families while the women remain in the home to tend to domestic chores while looking after children. This means that the qualities that are associated with masculinity are intelligence, daring, courage, wisdom, and physical strength. Women in Muslim culture are expected to be caring, patient, considerate, kind, and obedient to their husbands. The Muslim culture holds that women are different from men in significant emotional and intellectual ways. That means that their trust of the decisions made on their behalf by male members of the family is paramount to their well being (North and Trip, 2012). In Hindu culture, men are also expected to be the primary breadwinners in the family. Jobless men are not respected as much as those who have steady jobs. Intelligence, wisdom, physical strength, virility and perseverance are qualities that are attributed to real masculinity in Hindu culture. Hindu women are expected to be caring homemakers who respect the values of their ancestors. Even though modern Hindu women are embracing working lives in increasing numbers, traits such as submissiveness and quietness are still valued in the Hindu woman in Hindu society. The United States has more balance between the roles of men and women in society than most other cultures around the world, and so there is not much variation between how men and women are expected to behave. Both men and women are expected to work in order to maintain their households. This means that courage, diligence, patience, consideration, and perseverance are attributes that are valued in both men and women. Moreover, there are still subtle elements in the culture that encourage women to be more caring and nurturing than men. Why are these Characteristics are Important to Each Culture? In Muslim culture, religion is the basis of every action undertaken by all Muslims. The Qura’n, which is the holy book of Muslims, is the source of all laws concerning how the genders ought to conduct themselves. The women who are extolled as being the ‘perfect’ women in this book tend to be homemakers and daughters who remained faithful to their male relatives even when their lives were negatively affected by their sacrificial obedience. Muslim cultures revere their examples and expect their women to emulate their examples. On the other hand, the Qur’an stipulates that men have been put by “allah” in positions of authority over women. This means that women’s obedience to men is indisputable; and that any woman who does not believe this is risking her immortal soul. Muslims therefore tend to adhere to rules concerning the roles of the sexes in a more rigid fashion than is the case with other cultures (Long, 2005). In the Hindu culture, the attitudes about the roles of the sexes and the preferable traits for both sexes are influenced by the Vedas, which are the sacred texts in the Hindu religion. In the partriarchal system supported by this texts, a man’s masculinity is confirmed by the obedience of all women in his household to his rules. If a man does not rule over his wife, then the perpetuation of the rules of the Vedas concerning the continuation of rightful authority are broken. If a daughter refuses to serve her father and brothers or a wife disobeys her husband, then the established order of communication between the male and female sex is disturbed and this disorder will be observed in other elements of nature. The importance of perpetuating these believes about the roles of both genders therefore has a religious basis, just as is the case in the Muslim cultures. In American culture, the changes that are now evident in society concerning the roles of men and women were not always there. Just a century ago, women were mainly expected to concentrate on bearing children and maintaining the home while men concentrated on providing for their families. In those years, women were mainly expected to be caring , nurturing, and kind, just as is the case in the rest of the developing nations today. Moreover, in the twentieth century, America underwent a series of revolutions that shook American society to its core, questioned almost all previously held “permanent truths”, and redefined the roles of men and women in society. The women’s or feminist movement that took place around the 1960s liberated womens’ minds to consider the possibility that they were capable of more than just being mothers and housekeepers. Men were also challenged to reconsider their views on women so that women could become workers in their own right. Undoubtedly, the entry of women into the workplace helped to boost the American economy in ways that would have been impossible if they were kept at home. With the growth of the economy due to the economic participation of women in the workplace, the American society began to change in its socialization of its young. Whereas girls were previously encouraged to be considerate, accommodating of others, and submissive, they started being encouraged to develop talents and seek to achieve their own careers. Even though the traits of compassion and being a nurturer are still encouraged in American girls, they are not promoted to the same extent that they were over a century ago. Men, on the other hand, are encouraged to be more and more accommodating while still being competitive. With the entry of women into the workforce in large members, society emphasized less and less on traditional characters for the men, while encouraging them to be more willing to express their feelings. Sometimes the changing roles for both men and women in society have resulted in some confusion. For instance, when wives earn more money than their husbands, the men in such situations may start to struggle with redefining what masculinity really is. Also, women in their childbearing years experience conflict when they become mothers but are still expected to be regular workers. How are Girls and Boys Trained to Follow These Ideals and What are the Positive and Negative Mechanisms to Train Individuals in a Culture? In the United States, mass media elements such as the television and the internet are used to influence the mainstream culture. In most programmes that are screened in these elements, women are shown working alongside men, and sometimes occupying positions of authority above men. This helps growing children to understand that both sexes are equal and that any one can accomplish dreams in spite of their sex. Also, there are many women in positions of leadership and authority in ordinary. American parents tend not to discriminate against their daughters when bringing up their children. Both boys and girls are expected to help in tasks such as cooking, cleaning, and in helping their parents in different chores. This means that the children grow up seeing the other gender as being equal to theirs. Still, there are subtle elements that serve to encourage boys and girls to embrace different roles. Daughters are usually given dolls to play with while boys are given toy cars and sports implements (Fischer, 2011). In addition, most animated features created for the consumption of children tend to stress on the different roles of men and women. For instance, the princesses or victims in such features are always exceedingly beautiful while the tormentors are ugly crones. The victims in these features are always rescued by men and not women. These subtly seems to imply to young girls that qualities such as beauty and helplessness are the best qualities for girls to embrace. They also insinuate that the ‘real’ rescuers can only ever be men and not women. Young boys who watch such features learn that it is important to be assertive and athletic in order to make a place for one’s self in the world. In Muslim culture, segregation is enforced between the sexes right from the time of birth. Even though young boys will be allowed to remain with their mothers in their toddler years, they also learn that they are expected to avoid members of the female gender as soon as they can understand it. Since each sex is ensconced with the parent of the same sex, the child soon learns to play the specific role of that gender. Young girls help their mothers in maintaining the home and cooking meals. Young boys learn to help in the father’s trade. In addition, boys are taught that their female relatives are the vessels that hold the ‘honor’ of the family, and so have to be shielded at all costs to protect that honor. In most Muslim societies, boys and girls attend different educational institutions right from childhood, and so actually learn to be uncomfortable in the presence of members of the opposite sex. Women are also compelled to cover themselves in long black robes right from puberty. Strict Muslim families, particularly those of the higher classes such as royals, practice ‘purdah’- where the female members of the family never leave their homes and are always hidden within their rooms in their households. In the Hindu culture, roles of men are women are extensively defined. Hindu women are saddled with responsibilities that make their lives, particularly if they are among the lower classes, a perpetual burden (Gama, 2009). Women are seen as a liability since they have to be protected from other men, and then have to produce a large dowry in order for them to marry. Many Hindu families actively wish or pray or sons due to these issues. To some extent, women are disdained in Hindu culture because of the cost of maintaining them. Thus, they tend to be mistreated in families that feel that they are mere encumbrances. They tend to perform the most menial tasks and constantly serve their men in all aspects. Young girls who see their mothers perform these tasks will ape this behavior, while the sons ape the sense of entitlement that they see demonstrated by their fathers. In some Hindu communities, women eat the left overs that are left after the father and sons of a family have eaten (Luce, 2008). Even though women in higher castes fare much better than lower-class women, they still are much more constrained by cultural laws than men. References Fischer, C. (2011). Made in America: A social history of american culture and character. Chicago: University Of Chicago Press. Gama, N. (2009). Culture wise India: The essential guide to culture, customs and business etiquette. New York: Survival Books. Long, D. (2005). Culture and customs of Saudi Arabia (culture and customs of the Middle East). Westport: Greenwood. Luce, E. (2008). In spite of the Gods: The rise of modern India. New York: Anchor. North, P., & Trip, H. (2012). Culture shock! Saudi Arabia: A survival guide to customs and etiquette (culture shock! guides). New York: Marshall Cavendish. Read More